The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for winding a continuously advancing yarn to form a cross wound yarn package, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for threading an advancing yarn onto a rotating bobbin tube at the beginning of the winding operation.
DE 43 34 813 discloses a yarn winding apparatus, wherein an advancing yarn is wound on a driven tube. In this apparatus, the tube is clamped between two centering plates, which are mounted for rotation on a package holder. The bobbin tube lies against a drive roll and is driven thereby. After the tube has reached a predetermined winding speed, the yarn is caught and cut in the circumferential region of a centering plate, with the loose yarn end being received in a suction device. After winding some initial layers on the tube on the end next to the winding range so as to form a so-called yarn reserve wind, the winding of the package starts. To catch and initially wind the yarn, the yarn is guided by a movable auxiliary yarn guide before being released for the actual winding cycle.
Such winding apparatus are used, for example, in texturing machines for winding a textured yarn to a package. In this process, the continuously advancing yarn is received by a suction device before catching and winding the yarn in the initial layers on the empty tube. The yarn removed by suction is delivered to a waste receptacle. It is therefore attempted to keep the time as short as possible, during which the yarn is guided by the suction device, i.e., during each package doff.
EP 0 311 827 discloses a method and an apparatus, wherein the yarn is guided during a package doff by a traversing yarn guide that is driven by a stepping motor. This method eliminates a transfer of the yarn to the yarn traversing device after catching and winding the initial layers. However, this method and apparatus have likewise the disadvantage that the package doffing phase during which waste yarn is produced requires a relatively great deal of time.
It is accordingly an object of the present invention to further develop a method and apparatus of the above described type such as to minimize the amount of waste of the continuously advancing yarn before catching same and winding initial layers thereof on the bobbin tube. A further object of the invention is to catch the yarn with great reliability before winding.